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Seven Points of Health Reform Advocated by Most

Most announced on Wednesday the measures it will advocate for as part of health reform, emphasizing the principle of equality and equal access to healthcare for all citizens, and rejecting speculations that they advocate for further privatization of the healthcare system.

– Accessibility and good organization of healthcare services for all citizens under equal conditions is our obligation. The right to health is a fundamental human right, the members of Most emphasize in their proposal for health reform, which encompasses basic healthcare, rationalization and financial stabilization of the system, urgent measures to stop the outflow of healthcare personnel, defining strategic projects, depoliticization, reform of the health insurance system, and hospital healthcare.

Most highlights its opposition to further privatization of the system in its statement, which, they say, is evidenced by the statements of its members from the very beginning of the campaign, as well as after the elections, when they repeatedly emphasized such a position. They also state that they advocate for a more entrepreneurial climate in healthcare, but that this is only a small segment of the healthcare system. They interpret the lack of money in the system as a consequence of several factors, including irrationalities in managing an oversized and inefficient system, for which they propose seven measures, including a new model for merging hospital activities and specific measures to stop doctors from leaving for abroad.

Among the measures, they state that they will seek a revision of the National Hospital Development Plan in the Republic of Croatia (the so-called Masterplan for Hospitals) established by the previous health administration, which, they say, has not been implemented. The plan needs to be amended in terms of integrating functional activities, rather than hospitals, along with a clear analysis of financial sustainability. The health administration should no longer have priority in creating health policy compared to other system stakeholders – employers, patient associations, chambers, unions…

Regarding hospitals, they demand urgent accreditation and certification of hospitals, as well as an analysis of the work of the Hospital Accreditation Agency or its abolition, media reports. They advocate for the adoption of a clear “National Hospital Development Plan in the Republic of Croatia,” on which consensus needs to be reached, continuous analysis of health technologies, the creation of a “Central Register of Medical Equipment” (types, years, number of procedures performed, distribution), as well as the rationalization of non-health activities. In the reform of health insurance, they will advocate for a policy of real prices for healthcare services. “The health administration must not politically determine prices,” the members of Most assert. They will seek the depoliticization of health management and leaders of health units at all levels, as well as achieving a “zero tolerance rate in healthcare towards all forms of crime, nepotism, corruption, and exploitation of social and communal resources for private interests.”

As part of basic healthcare, they propose that it be defined and ensured for all citizens, based on the principle of social solidarity, and that the powers of health centers be clearly defined, as the foundation for the functioning of the healthcare system, for over 90 percent of healthcare service users. They also propose urgent measures to improve the status of doctors in Croatia to stop their emigration, among which is the signing of a professional collective agreement for doctors and involving doctors in negotiating their working conditions.
They will advocate, they say, for the continuation of initiated strategic projects and the definition of a plan for the construction and development of hospital capacities by 2030, as well as for the further development of tourism and spa medicine. When asked about the proposed reform measures, Ines Strenja Linić from Most said that the members of Most will soon discuss their health reform proposal with representatives of the Patriotic Coalition.

– The reform of healthcare continues; after the exit of HZZO from the state treasury, things have improved, but there are still many issues to resolve. The operations of some hospitals have come to a standstill, except in those hospitals led by politically appointed directors. We will turn the entire system more towards patients, and shortening waiting lists must not be just a facade. A certain level of healthcare standards must be available to all citizens in the Republic of Croatia, Strenja Linić stated.

The question of who will be the future Minister of Health, she says, has not yet been communicated as names have not been discussed so far.

– It must be someone who will be able to carry out the reform. I believe that the final proposal will be from the Patriotic Coalition, but the final word will be with the mandate holder, Strenja Linić said.